Lieutenant Frederick William Crawford was the son of Frederick William and Elizabeth Ramsey Crawford, and husband of Kathleen Ellen Crawford, of Bournemouth, Hampshire. He was granted an emergency commission with The Royal Corps of Signals on 16 March 1943 and later volunteered for airborne forces.
He qualified as a miltary parachutist on Course 138 which ran at RAF Ringway from 16 to 28 October 1944.
Lt Crawford subsequently served with 6th Airborne Division Signals and it seems likely that he deployed with the Division to the Ardennes during the Winter of 1944-45
For Operation Varsity, the Rhine Crossing he served as the Commanding Officer of the Signals Section of the 5th Parachute Brigade.
Lt Crawford emplaned at 07.45 on 24 March 1945, landing just to the West of Hamminkeln. The Signal Section lost a considerable amount of its equipment on or soon after landing and Lieutenant Crawford, was killed on the RV.
Lieutenant Crawford died on 24 March 1945, aged 24 years old. He is now buried at Reichswald Forest War Cemetery, Kleve in Germany.
Headstone photograph courtesy of Brian Kealy.
